The Campaign For DA

7.23.2015

Another crazy and random conversation last night -- this time about chloroform. Can you dab it on a rag and "knock someone out"? No. Can you buy it over the counter? Yes. (The family member who was googling all of that has set herself up for a false accusation if one of the other family member decides to go crazy with chloroform.)

I found some candy on the counter in a package and ate it. I then learned the Senior In The House bought it on vacation for a friend. That may have been my biggest Homer Simpson moment ever.

I finally watched the Sandra Bland video, and I can't get past the trooper turning into a maniac after she wouldn't put out her cigarette. Why did he ask her to do that? Was this a DWI investigation? No. Did he fear it could be a weapon? No. He did it because he arrogantly thought he could demand anything. Give the lady credit (or at least we could if she wasn't dead) for standing up for herself.

And before I hear from the "just comply with the police" crowd, think about this: The government stopped and detained an American citizen for changing lanes without signaling - the horror!!! The government told her to stop smoking. The government ordered her out of her car. The government pointed a taser at her and told her they would "light her up." The government physically put her on the ground. The government arrested her. The government put her in a cage for three days.

She may very well have committed suicide while in jail. But, man, this is weird. She seems like the kind of person who couldn't wait to get out of jail because she would want to raise hell about that arrest.

As I was falling asleep last night, I watched a portion of Gone Girl. Oh, my.

Someone emailed me about an underrated Natalie Wood movie: Splendor in the Grass.

Does the flag code apply to private citizens? Heard that issue come up on the Mark Davis Show, and he was so off base. If it is your flag on your private property, you can do anything you want with it.

An assistant county attorney in Kentucky was fired after anti-gay and/or racist remarks because his apology letter used the always odd phrase of, "If I have offended anyone."

Trump is coming to the border today!!! Trump is coming to the border today!! Edit: It was just cancelled!! It was just cancelled!! Double edit: It's back on!! It's back on!!

I saw an obituary notice for Martha Hughes in the Update. I'm guessing that is the widow of the late Wise County District Judge and Fort Worth Court of Appeals Justice W.A. Hughes. (A Google search about Judge Hughes turned out to be shockingly frustrating.)

Denton police taser a guy on a motel balcony for not "backing up" as they subdue a naked woman. (That's a crazy sentence.) I didn't know they could mandate an arbitrary distance. Story. Video.

39 comments:

I heard this this morning and it makes perfect sense, although I can't confirm it. The reason that I heard about them having her put the cigarette out is because sometimes cigarette smoke can cover up the smell of marijuana and other drugs.

I may be part of this "just comply with police crowd" but maybe there was a reason for stopping her. I know lots of times that officers stop vehicle for minor items in hopes of finding larger things, like drugs.

More than likely, if she had just complied with the officer, then she may have just gotten a ticket and been on her way. In the same way, the one in Ferguson would still be alive if he had not chosen to attack the officer.

The other thing about the stop is the officer was just going to give her a warning ticket, but never told her that until he had as you say told her to put the cigarette out, ordered her out of her car to arrest her when she refused.It is about control and submission. The police expect it and some will resort to the extreme to get it.

did it ever occur to you that cigarette smoke could mask the smell of some other type of smoke that may be illegal? Or the odor of alcohol?

I used to think your liberal slant on stories (especially law enforcement) was a bit. Then I thought maybe it was your version of troll bait to elicit comments. Now I'm not sure what to think. Example: how you almost defend the guy who got tasered. Not only was he too close for comfort, but according to the story he physically tried to interfere. That'll get you zapped every time! He's actually lucky that's the only thing he got shot with

What are we missing on the arrest? People don't get held three days for a Class C. Haven't seen the video but we're not getting the whole story. As rough as the arrest might have been, the death is actually a separate event since it was at the jail days later?

The woman ran a stop sign and wouldn't put her cigarette out or get out of the car. So she wound up in jail and committed suicide. She was going to get a warning burst she wound up dead because she wasn't compliant. Not very smart. The few times I've been pulled over, I've been respectful and it worked for me; just warnings.

I think the officer broke a policy when he asked her to put out the cigarette. He infuriated her more. But cussing a refusing to get out of the car was wrong. He broke no laws. She acted like she was hopped up on drugs or just plain crazy..I suspect crazy. It has been said the officer is a rooky and he provoked her. Think he many be repremanded. But her suicide is on her not the officer...she was a time bomb seems to me.And it surprised me you didn't know the officer can demand arbritary distance. It happens all the time and they are many times arrested for it.

We give up a little of our personal liberty to live in a safer society with laws. I get that. Our government, however, is invading aspects of our lives which goes way beyond giving up certain liberties. That's a fact.

Now, in the Law Enforcement community,there is a huge number of officers that should never have been issued badge and gun. Just as in any organization that has been allowed to run rampant, there will be abuse, corruption and quality issues and that has been happening in the law enforcement community for decades.

BUT - today, we have social media, and body cams, and mics and every civilian is armed with a cellphone with a hi definition camera on it.

The poorly trained cops, the bad cops, the sociopaths who shouldn't be NEAR a gun are finally being monitored. And THAT is one of the main reasons there are so many instances of poor policing showing up everywhere.

She was irate she got stopped and she was honest about it when the trooper asked if she was angry. That ticked of the trooper and he decided he was going to show her who was in charge. The guy should have never been issued a badge to begin with!

There's a lot of really good cops out there that answered the call to serve and protect but THEY are the ones who must clean up their house. You think cops don't know which one of their own is a rabid dog?The Blue Wall of Silence needs to come down and the good cops need to be able to out the bad ones without fear of repercussions.

If it doesn't happen, the civil unrest will escalate until we have a full blown conflagration in our streets with hundreds or even thousands of willing participants.

We say that evil is dark. But this metaphor is imprecise. Evil is actually intensely bright. So painfully bright that people look away from it. Many even deny its existence. Why? Because once people acknowledge evil’s existence, they know that they have to confront it. And most people prefer not to confront evil.

I have learned from this blog that all cops want me dead. But what's so weird is that of the...I don't know...thousands of face to face encounters I have had with law officers during my lifetime; everything from walking the streets of NY city, or at city council meetings, or those moonlighting as security at places, or driving past the house on neighborhood watch and slowing up to say hello...and yes on the few times I have been pulled over...not a SINGLE encounter was unpleasant or ended up with me jailed or shot. How is that possible? Where are all these maniac cops? For the life of me, I can't find them. And I've come across hundreds. And most in TEXAS!!! Why are all the ones I encounter seemingly normal, thoughtful people.

did it ever occur to you that cigarette smoke could mask the smell of some other type of smoke that may be illegal? Or the odor of alcohol? - 9:23

The officer was well into the stop and hadn't detected marijuana or alcohol. He detected nothing and was going to let her go. Your assumption she was covering up the smell is completely unfounded. Her not being submissive to an egomaniacal cop is more accurate.

There are two classes in this country. Cops and Non-Cops. The first class has a badge, gun and a brotherhood that will lie, cheat and kill to protect them. The other class is their enemy/target.

A few weeks back I was driving from Lubbock to Boyd in the middle of the night. On the west side of Seymour I passed a SPD sitting in the local car wash. I was doing the speed limit. As I was exiting the city limits on the east side a car comes flying up behind me. I saw that it was that prick SPD as he passed under a street light behind me. I remained calm and stayed in my lane and under the limit. When we passed the city limits sign he turned around to go drink more coffee. If I had pulled over to let him by, he would have taken the opportunity to make sure I was "ok". Prick.

When an officer stops someone for a traffic violation wouldn't you think the officer would have to assess the complete situation to understand if there were any underlying influences causing the violation. Like alcohol or drugs or whatever?

I swear Barry...you are the dumbest smart person that I have encountered

Does the flag code apply to private citizens? Heard that issue come up on the Mark Davis Show, and he was so off base. If it is your flag on your private property, you can do anything you want with it.

Good God...it's the American flag. Flying an American flag comes with responsibilities and proper behaviors. Oops...I just lost 3/4 of the audience using those big words...

In your liberal mind Barry I'm sure you believe what you wrote; but there are guidelines on how to fly and treat the American flag.

Keep up the good work Barry and the liberal minions; because our children will pay for the complete "lowering of the bar" of every aspect of the American way of life.

The first question that should be asked in the Bland situation is when The DPS trooper pulled Ms. Bland over for failing to signal when changing lanes, was he serving the public or protecting the public?

The honest answer is neither.

The DPS trooper over-reacted and let the situation escalate out of control. Why not step back, call for backup, buy time, and try to calm the the situation down.

It is time for law enforcement to step up and rethink how they conduct their business. A woman is dead 72 hours after being engaged by a DPS trooper over a minor traffic violation that was only going to be issued a warning citation.

With the results we have now, expect more of the behavior exhibited by Ms. Bland in the video.

There it is! The nausea that has been missing! The Barry mode of "every cop is wrong in everything they do"! We were spared all that while you were on vacation and it was so nice! But as always,the media occupied your stead while you were away. So sad for the men and women trying to protect and serve citizens and still try to preserve their own lives. Good thing you have a law degree and can play devil's advocate on what should or should not be done in a pair of shoes you could never walk in. I trust you would poop your pants the first time you were confronted with an uncooperative offender, and run scared like a little girl! You like so many play judge and jury without ever knowing all the circumstances involved, and armchair quarterback every police involved event without the training, education, and horrendous experience of ever putting on a uniform, badge and gun and walking a mile in the shoes of these peacemakers! You should be ashamed but I know you aren't and someday you will be judged for it! Blessed are the peacemakers because they will be called the children of God! Matthew 5:9 Amen!

The official press release says the man"tried to push his way past the officer" when the video clearly shows him backing up as commanded and the cop move toward him then firing. What it should say is nigger gave me lip and did not respect my authoritah.

I've got to believe that your advice to any client that gets pulled over would be to immediately comply (but not, for example, volunteer information or consent to searches). You can challenge the stop or arrest or the cops behavior all you want, later -- at the time of the stop, the only reasonable objective is to get out of the crazy cop's control as quickly and painlessly as possible.

I get the put the cigarette out because of masking mary jane but either she was smoking and he did not tell her to put it out when he first approached after the stop or she was not smoking when she was stopped and he did not smell anything when she rolled her window down. Obviously he wanted her to submit and be compliant.

11:43: It looks like the "every cop is right" bunch has returned as well.

In the Bland situation, The DPS trooper escalated the situation and lost control. It is clear even from the edited video.

More of the same of Ms. Bland's reaction and behavior is coming. Does law enforcement continue with "business as usual," or do they try to come up with a way to diffuse these situations before they blow up?

There are two classes in this country. Cops and Non-Cops. The first class has a badge, gun and a brotherhood that will lie, cheat and kill to protect them. The other class is their enemy/target. 10:00 AM

You tumbled off any moral high ground you may have occupied by making it a strictly one-or-the-other issue. Some cops may be bad, but that doesn't make them all bad.

I think TF is getting crotchety in his old age.

Bingo, Captain Obvious! For once, I agree with something you've said.But truthfully, I started out fairly crotchety. I am currently enjoying/suffering from the advanced stages of crotchetyitis.Now get off my lawn!